On April 20, 2019, a tragic incident occurred in El Cerro Mission, Valencia County, New Mexico, resulting in the deaths of three individuals, including Joseph Daniel Santiago, who was 29 years old at the time of his death. The incident took place at a house party, where Santiago, along with Darren Bernal, 40, and Nathan Morrison, 28, were fatally shot.
The investigation into the triple homicide led to the swift arrest of three suspects.
Hours after the discovery of the bodies, Robert Wilson, 19, Brandon Dowdy, 18, and Anthony Williams, 17, were taken into custody by the Valencia County Sheriff's deputies. These individuals were charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
Anthony Williams, who was just 17 years old at the time of the crime, was identified as the shooter. Initial interviews with witnesses indicated that Williams fired a shotgun three times, resulting in the deaths of the three victims. The other two suspects, Wilson and Dowdy, were also implicated in the crime, with charges reflecting their alleged roles in the incident.
However, the case took a significant turn during the subsequent legal proceedings. After a grand jury found probable cause for the charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy against Williams, Dowdy, and Wilson on May 2, 2019, further review of the evidence led to a reevaluation of the case. The district attorney's office, after consulting with cooperative witnesses and reviewing pre-trial interviews, determined that the evidence was insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the suspects had committed first-degree murder.
As a result, the district attorney's office offered a plea deal that significantly reduced the charges against the suspects. Anthony Williams, who had been charged with three counts of first-degree murder as an adult, would instead be charged with voluntary manslaughter. Given that he was a minor at the time of the crime, he would be released when he turned 21. The other suspects, Robert Wilson and Brandon Dowdy, would be charged with aggravated assault and would be released after serving two years in jail, with an additional two years of probation.
The families of the victims expressed deep frustration and disappointment with the plea deal, feeling that justice had not been served. They argued that the reduced charges and the eventual release of the suspects were not commensurate with the severity of the crime, especially considering that their loved ones would never have the chance to live again.
The district attorney's office explained that the decision was based on the legal and ethical obligation to ensure that the charges could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Despite the families' disappointment, the office emphasized that they had to protect both the rights of the victims and the defendants, and that sometimes justice may not meet the expectations of the victims.
